Waste Management and Phoenix police are joining forces in a national program called Waste Watch.

Waste haulers, much like neighborhood watch groups, will be on the lookout for fires, broken windows, abandoned cars, suspicious people or criminal activity.

Meyer Turken, chairman of the McDowell Corridor Community Alliance in Maryvale, applauds the partnership.

The concept is not new to drivers, said Melissa Quillard of Waste Management of Arizona. Many drive the same 150-mile route for years and often report crime or other suspicious activity.

The partnership gives the newly trained Waste Management drivers a more efficient way to communicate with police.

Workers learn how to relay details of suspicious activity to dispatchers so patrol officers can effectively respond.

Drivers must pass a criminal background check, are trained on what to look out for, as well as the proper way to handle different situations.

As many as 300 could be trained in the coming year, said Phoenix police Officer Jill Fowler, who oversees neighborhood patrol training through the Police Department's Community Relations Bureau.

Fowler said she envisions expanding the program to other area cities and providing similar training to companies such as Valley Metro or UPS in light of economic strains on Phoenix-area police.

The Waste Watch program has trained about 4,000 drivers across the U.S. and Canada.

Phoenix is the first city in the state to participate. Waste Management said it planned to expand the program statewide.

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